Brann tossed a one-hit shutout and Chad Murphy connected on a three-run homer in the first inning to help Greene Central cruise to an 8-0 win over top-ranked North Pitt on Tuesday.

The win was the first this season for any Eastern Plains 2A Conference team over the Panthers, who are ranked first in the latest ImpactBaseball.com statewide 2A baseball poll.

Odds are that won’t be the case once the newest poll is released thanks to Brann and Co.

“I got to get a win for my team on senior night, that’s what I had to do,” the senior left-hander said. “I had to come out here and just pitch. Just do my thing.”

That he did.

Murphy’s shot to right-center scored the first runs of the game, and they were all Brann needed. But he got more.

The Rams (13-7, 10-2), who now sit a half-game back of North Pitt (18-2, 10-1) for the top spot in the league, plated six in the first inning to give their ace plenty of room to work with.

Turns out, Brann only needed one.

Using his changeup and breaking pitches effectively, Brann retired the first eight he faced and took a no-hitter into the fourth.

His first and only hit was yielded to Rashawn Lockamy, who singled through the hole on the left side of the infield in an 0-2 count with one away in the fourth.

From then on North Pitt managed six base runners — two walks, an error, a hit-by-pitch and a pair of fielder’s choices — but only one made it into scoring position.

Brann (8-0) walked Tyler Sutton to begin the seventh but retired the side after that to give Greene Central its sixth straight win and the senior his fifth shutout of the year.

The southpaw struck out three and walked three and reduced his already-staggering ERA from 0.77 to 0.67, according to statistics found at Maxpreps.com.

“To hold them to a shutout is more than you could ask for,” Rams coach Scott Jones said.

Not knowing what was ahead from its ace, Greene Central’s offense got to North Pitt starter Damien Dudley early and often.

Chandler Barrow led off the Rams’ first at-bat with a single followed by a walk from Brann. Murphy then stepped up and sent an 0-1 fastball into the pines beyond the fence in right-center field for his fourth homer of the season and the early 3-0 lead.

Kevin Ormond singled, Austin Batchelor walked and Mason Head put one in play to load the bases. Dudley got Austin Mooring to go down swinging for the Rams’ first out, but James Head followed with a two-run single just ahead of Dylan Taylor’s fielder’s choice that scored Mason Head and sent the Rams back to the top of their lineup.

Barrow flew out to right to end the inning, but not before Greene Central put the Panthers in a 6-0 hole too big to climb out of.

Especially with the way Brann was throwing the ball.

“We know they’re a very good ballclub. We swung the bats early and that probably took some wind out of their sails,” Jones said of North Pitt. “That probably relaxed Ben a little bit.

“Pitching on senior night, when you’re a senior, that ain’t the easiest thing in the world to do.”

Murphy, who went 2-for-4, drove in his fourth run of the night in the fourth. Josh Head, running for Brann, scored on an error that same inning for the final margin.

Ormond singled twice and scored once in a win that puts the Rams in position to share the conference title with North Pitt, but they’re going to need some help.

The Panthers, who have already clinched at least a share of the crown, face Wilson Beddingfield in their final EP2A game on Thursday. If North Pitt wins, the crown is its to hold. If the Bruins win, there will be a one-game playoff sometime next week to determine which team, Greene Central or North Pitt, gets the league’s top playoff berth.

“I knew today we had to come out and come out strong and beat them,” Brann said. “I don’t think we’ve lost in the second half of conference (play) and we’ve been doing really well the whole time.”

“We did all we can do,” Jones added. “Win, lose or draw we’ll be happy even if we don’t get to play for the playoff seed. We did what we had to do tonight.”

Notes: Brann lost his perfect game with a two-out walk to Collin Brinkley in the third on a bizarre series of events. Twice before the home plate umpire had granted time to the batter with Brann in the windup. Brinkley asked for time and stepped out but wasn’t granted it, throwing Brann off his rhythm. His next pitch was Ball 4. … A wet ball on a damp night led to Greene Central’s only error. Chad Murphy fielded the Lockamy’s grounder cleanly at shortstop but lost the ball as he tried to throw. Brann was given a dry ball after the play. … Lockamy and Christopher Perry each reached base twice for North Pitt. … Murphy raised his team-best average 11 points to .333. … The Rams will not play Spring Creek today due to the Gators having too many conference games left to play.

Ryan Herman can be reached at 252-559-1073 or Ryan.Herman@Kinston.com. Follow him on Twitter: @KFPSports.